Could Deandre Hopkins Return To Tennessee?

The NFL offseason is about to start and free agent names are going to every team possible, and the Titans have no shortage of predicted players. With the most cap space in the league, the Tennessee Titans are going to be a serious contender in many of the top free agent conversations, but article by Pro Football Focus (PFF) in particular caught my eye.

This article was describing the ideal landing spot of the top ten graded offensive free agents, and former Titans and current Ravens wide receiver Deandre Hopkins was listed at 7. The article stated his ideal landing spot was with Tennessee to both get a higher target share than he did this previous season, as well as mentor young quarterback Cam Ward.

Via CBS sports

There are some issues for the argument of Hopkins coming back to Tennessee; mainly, Tennessee now has a completely different system. Hopkins was coached by the now-fired Brian Callahan when he was traded back in October of 2024. The general manager that ended up trading Hopkins was also fired, as it was Ran Carthon who made the move to get rid of him. Almost the entire front office and training staff is completely different than when Hopkins was playing, and the team isn't very similar either.

On top of this, Hopkins has recently come out and said that he would love to return back to the Ravens, stating "I would love to come back, but not every OC is wanting a veteran WR on their team." He also states he would have liked to have been used more, but it doesn't upset him that he wasn't. His main motive for playing another year in Baltimore seems to be his connection with quarterback Lamar Jackson.

Overall, it would be great to bring back Nuk to help develop Cam Ward and bring some veteran presence to a young receiving core, but that just is not realistic. Hopkins is at a point in his career where he is playing to compete, and the Titans don't seem to be at that point just yet. There are little to no connections with him and the Titans at this point outside of a couple of coaches and veterans, and it probably isn't in the future Hall of Famer's best interest to come back to this organization for the end of his career.